Short Names

Four letters or fewer, or one syllable. Short names pair well with long surnames and badly with short ones, which is the single most reliable thing anyone can tell you about choosing on sound.

Rankings for

185 names, most popular first in United States

Very Rare Rare Uncommon

Girls Boys Unisex

Emma Emma is a girl's name of Germanic origin meaning "whole" or "universal," from the element ermen, found in older names such as Ermintrude.
Germanic #3 in US
Mia Mia is a girl's name that began as a short form of longer names such as Maria and Amelia before becoming an independent given name in its own right.
uncertain (Scandinavian/Italian short form) #6 in US
Ava Ava is a girl's name with several proposed origins rather than one settled root.
uncertain (Latin, Germanic, or Hebrew) #11 in US
Nora Nora is a girl's name that developed as a short form of longer names, chiefly Honora and Eleanor, and is now used independently.
Latin #20 in US
Ellie Ellie is a girl's name that began as a short form of Eleanor, Ellen, and Elizabeth, and is now widely given as a name in its own right.
English #24 in US
Ella Ella is a girl's name with two distinct origins. The Norman French line derives from the Germanic element ali, meaning other or foreign, while a Hebrew line gives Ella as a word for a terebinth tree.
Germanic #29 in US
Lainey Lainey is a girl's name that developed as a pet form of Elaine, itself an Old French version of Helen.
French #30 in US
Zoe Zoe is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "life," taken directly from the Greek word zoe.
Greek #31 in US
Mila Mila is a girl's name with two independent origins.
Slavic #43 in US
Nova Nova is a girl's name of Latin origin meaning "new," from novus.
Latin #46 in US
Sadie Sadie is a girl's name that began as a pet form of Sarah, the Hebrew name meaning "princess" or "noblewoman."
Hebrew #50 in US
Leah Leah is a girl's name of Hebrew origin whose meaning is disputed, most often given as "weary" but also linked to a word for wild cow.
Hebrew #58 in US
Maya Maya is a girl's name with several unrelated origins.
Sanskrit #62 in US
Claire Claire is a girl's name of French origin meaning "clear" or "bright," from the Latin clarus.
French #68 in US
Zoey Zoey is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "life," a phonetic English respelling of Zoe.
Greek #69 in US
Millie Millie is a girl's name that began as a pet form of longer names — chiefly Millicent, Mildred, Amelia and Camilla — and is now given in its own right.
English #73 in US
Ayla Ayla is a girl's name with several unrelated origins.
Turkish #77 in US
Lyla Lyla is a girl's name of disputed origin.
Modern coinage #80 in US
Josie Josie is a girl's name that began as a pet form of Josephine, and so means "he will add," inherited from the Hebrew Yosef.
Hebrew #82 in US
Jade Jade is a girl's name from the gemstone, and its origin is unexpectedly medical: the Spanish called it piedra de la ijada, "stone of the flank," because it was believed to cure kidney and abdominal ailments.
Spanish #95 in US
Cora Cora is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "maiden," from kore.
Greek #113 in US
Hallie Hallie is a girl's name with more than one line.
English #120 in US
Eva Eva is a girl's name of Hebrew origin meaning "life" or "living."
Hebrew #134 in US
Bella Bella is a girl's name of Italian origin meaning "beautiful."
Italian #136 in US
June June is a girl's name of Latin origin taken from the month, which is named for the goddess Juno — the queen of the Roman gods and the protector of marriage and childbirth.
Latin #150 in US
Lilah Lilah is a girl's name with two possible origins: the Hebrew laylah, meaning "night," or a short form of Delilah, whose meaning is "delicate" or "languishing."
Hebrew #179 in US
Lila Lila is a girl's name with two unrelated origins: the Arabic layla, meaning "night," and the Sanskrit līlā, meaning "divine play" — a concept in Hindu philosophy for creation as a form of play.
Arabic #186 in US
Kaia Kaia is a girl's name with several origins: a Scandinavian pet form of Katarina, the Hawaiian for "the sea," and the Greek Gaia, meaning "earth" — so it can mean sea or land depending on the family.
Disputed #193 in US
Lia Lia is a girl's name of Hebrew origin, the Italian and Portuguese form of Leah — whose own meaning is disputed between "weary" and "wild cow," neither of them especially flattering.
Hebrew #200 in US
Myla Myla is a girl's name whose origin is unsettled.
Disputed #210 in US
Zara Zara is a girl's name with more than one origin. It is read as "radiance" or "blossom" from the Arabic zahrah, and as a form of Sarah, meaning "princess," from Hebrew — and both readings are in active use.
Arabic #212 in US
Ada Ada is a girl's name with two origins. In Germanic it is a short form of names beginning with adal, noble; in Hebrew, Adah means "adornment" and belongs to two women in Genesis.
Germanic #220 in US
Ana Ana is a girl's name of Hebrew origin meaning "favor" or "grace," and it is the form of Anna used across Spanish, Portuguese and Slavic Europe.
Hebrew #245 in US
Evie Evie is a girl's name of Hebrew origin meaning "life."
Hebrew #271 in US
Lena Lena is a girl's name used as a short form of Helena, Magdalena and Elena, so it usually carries the sense "light" or "torch."
Greek #279 in US
Gia Gia is a girl's name, the Italian short form of Gianna, meaning God is gracious.
Italian #287 in US
Leia Leia is a girl's name whose modern use comes almost entirely from Star Wars.
Invented #297 in US
Tessa Tessa is a girl's name that grew out of Theresa and is now used independently.
Greek #311 in US
Kali Kali is a girl's name of Sanskrit origin naming the Hindu goddess, from kala meaning both black and time.
Sanskrit #323 in US
Nina Nina is a girl's name with several unrelated origins.
Disputed #324 in US
Zuri Zuri is a girl's name of Swahili origin meaning "beautiful".
Swahili #328 in US
Mira Mira is a girl's name that arrives from at least four unrelated directions — Latin for wonderful, Slavic for peace, Sanskrit through the poet Mirabai, and the name of a variable star.
Latin #335 in US
Hope Hope is a girl's name of Old English origin taken from the virtue, from hopian.
English #352 in US
Thea Thea is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "goddess."
Greek #353 in US
Raya Raya is a girl's name with several unrelated origins.
Arabic #369 in US
Anya Anya is a girl's name of Russian origin, a diminutive of Anna.
Russian #375 in US
Demi Demi is a girl's name usually explained as French for "half", from the Latin dimidius.
French #380 in US
Danna Danna is a girl's name with two sources. In Spanish-speaking use it is a modern form of Daniela, from the Hebrew for God is my judge; in English it is a respelling of Dana, an older name whose own origin is disputed.
Hebrew #394 in US

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